jessica's treasures

I'm still here

2010-10-27T13:39:00.002-05:00

Hello everyone! I know it has been FAR TOO LONG since I have posted anything on here, but it has been even longer since I have done anything worth posting. I miss my crafts, but I have been focusing on my family.

I just wanted to let you all know that I deeply appreciate your thoughts and prayers during this time and your support. I hope you continue to follow Cameron's Journey and to pray for my sweet little one. His big brother needs your thoughts also. We are trying to not let him be affected negatively by this, but that is difficult.

I have updated Cameron's blog a bit lately. Please check it out.

Cameron's Journey

A dose of serious, please read

2010-10-08T15:04:00.001-05:00

Hello blogger friends of Jessica! My name is Tia and I am currently standing in for her to update you on the latest happenings in her life. As you all may know her youngest son, Cameron, has had some medical issues going on. They've been seeking opinion after opinion to find out what's going on with him. Well, they got some answers yesterday that they've been trying to process.

Cameron has been diagnosed with a genetic brain disorder called Leukodystrophy. There are 34 different kinds. The doctors have started running more tests to find out which one Cameron has. His doctor thinks he has Metachromatic Leukodystrophy or MLD. It is fatal and there is no cure or treatment for it.

So Jessica needs you. She needs your encouragement, your kind words and most importantly her, her family & Cameron NEED your prayers!

I'll go ahead and say really quick that I believe in an Almighty and Powerful God. I believe that He is in the business of healing and restoring. I know that He is capable of completely curing Cameron and there is nothing we want more right now. So please, I ask you, pray pray pray for God's healing power over this sweet and precious baby boy. Only God can fix this.

Here is a sweet face to add to your memory when thinking about and praying for this little angel who just celebrated his first birthday on the 26th of August.

I know he looks healthy. That's the hard part. He looks healthy and happy and HOW COULD this baby be so sick? Well, he is. And he needs an army of people praying for him. So please join me in spreading the word about Cameron.

Thank you so much.

To further follow this family you can check back here and I'll do my best to keep you up to date if Jessica prefers OR you can follow the blog she created just for Cameron over at Cameron's Journey. There is a button there that you can grab to add to your blog if you want to partner in spreading the word in praying for a miracle for this little boy.

Thanks again friends!

Tia &

Cameron's Blog

2010-08-23T07:29:00.000-05:00

Hello strangers. I am currently starting a new blog to tell about Cameron and all he is going through as well as our family. I'm trying to get wordpress figured out so bare with me.

I hope that you all will check it out.

Cameron's Journey

Cameron's Progress

2010-06-08T07:22:00.000-05:00

I got an email recently from a sweet reader asking how Cameron was doing. I was so touched to know that someone was still thinking and praying for him-thank you Erin!

Erin's email reminded me that I sort of left you all hanging in the air about what is going on with our family. I didn't realize that so much time had passed and we have been so busy. I also didn't realize that anyone would notice if I stopped posting. I love blogging and sharing all of my little projects, but all of that has seemed to take the back burner-as it should-since all of this has developed with Cameron. I hope to start blogging again eventually. It is nice to have an outlet.

So, here is an update on how Cameron is doing if any of you would like to know.

Cameron is doing wonderfully. His CT scan came back a couple of weeks afterward and our neurologist said that he didn't see any signs of craniosynostosis. It's hard to describe how I felt with that phone call. It may seem strange, but my first reaction was terror. We had finally accepted it, and finally had an idea of what was wrong and we were relieved that even though he would have to undergo surgery-he could be helped. I felt like someone zapped the hope right out of me for the rest of the day. I tried really hard to stay positive, but I was so scared. I was afraid that if it wasn't that, than it could be something that couldn't be helped. I am doing much better now that some time has gone by. I have put that fear out of my mind and I am trying to convince myself that everything is fine! :)

We still don't have an answer. Cameron is scheduled for an MRI of his brain on the 21st and we also go to see a pediatric ophthalmologist on the 23rd. The doctor said he is expecting a normal brain, but that he is looking for a structural cause as to why Cameron's head isn't growing correctly and why is development is not on track. That is all I know. I have nothing else. I begged the nurse to tell me something, anything that the doctor was leaning towards or any possibility. The not knowing is the worst part and we have been in the dark for 7 months now.

On a brighter note Cameron has been doing amazing in his physical therapy. The therapist comes up to my office 2 - 3 times per month and re-evaluates him and shows me new things to do. He is officially sitting up now. I still won't leave him sitting alone just because he will fall over after a little while, but it's a start. He can also now roll from back to tummy and then back again. His hand eye coordination is getting so much better. I do therapy with Cameron every day in the mornings and afternoons for about an hour or however long he lets me and work allows.

He is also beginning to eat a few solid foods. He likes the yogurt melts, and mum-mums. I thought we would be on baby food forever there for a bit. He just couldn't figure out what to do with anything that wasn't pureed and would choke. It honestly brought tears to my eyes when he picked up his food, brought it to his mouth and began biting and chewing for the first time last week. It is so encouraging to see him reaching these milestones finally.

So overall-Cameron is great. We are pushing through as a family and are still waiting on a diagnoses. We don't know what the future has in store for Cameron and our family, but we are trusting in God and trying our best to give him everything he needs.

Wow. Sorry that is long! I have a rambling problem, but you should already know that if you are a follower! :)

I feel bad that I haven't kept everyone updated, but we have been so focused on him and our other son Caden that the blog just didn't seem as important to me anymore if that makes sense. I hope that I have time soon to post more regularly. It is sort of therapeutic sometimes.

I hope that you all will keep Cameron in your thoughts and prayers.

If you believe

2010-04-29T14:49:00.000-05:00

in prayer my family sure could use some.

You may or may not remember the several posts about my youngest Cameron. You can read them here, here, here, here, and here.

After our initial appointment with the pediatric neurosurgeon in the beginning we have just been keeping our eye on Cameron's development to make sure all really was well.

Turns out that the neurosurgeon (whom didn't even examine Cameron's head mind you) was terribly wrong. Cameron hadn't been meeting his milestones and he was becoming so behind that our family doctor and I were still worried and decided we needed a second opinion.

We just went back to a new Pediatric Neurologist this past Monday, April 26th, for our second opinion. I thought I would share with you all about how it went so that maybe Cameron could have the benefit of a few more thoughts and prayers.

Our new neurologist is amazing. He was so nice and listened to everything we had to say and answered all of our questions patiently. He really took his time listening to us and examining Cameron and even talking to him and playing with him which was sweet. We feel very blessed to have gotten such a great doctor-especially since our original doctor was less than desirable.

The doctor basically confirmed what we had been fearing for a while. He said that Cameron's fontanel or soft spot is unusually smaller than it should be at this stage (I cannot feel it AT ALL). He said that what this is most commonly cause by is Craniosynostosis which is a birth defect-hate that word-that basically entails the growth plates in an infants head closing prematurely (they normally close around age 2) which can also be caused by a brain abnormality. Babies with Craniosynostosis often develop seizures, blindness, developmental delays, facial deformation, mental retardation and even death if it remains untreated.

Cameron is also 2-4 months behind on his development. He is just now beginning to roll over and should be well into crawling and beginning to pulling up etc. The doctor prescribed physical therapy for that and we are anxious to get started and hoping that he will catch up, but if not the Doctor will order an MRI to do a further study of Cameron's brain.

The doctor is hoping to know more after the CT scan. If Cameron does have Craniosynotosis than he will need surgery and hopefully that will help him. In the surgery they would have to go into his skull and separate the fused bones so that it would allow the brain to grow and release the pressure.

Cameron had his CT scan this morning and he did amazing. He is such a tough little trooper. No tears thank goodness which made it much easier on his nervous momma standing nearby.

We feel scared about what is to come, but relieved to not be in limbo anymore. Our doctor was wonderful and informative so we feel like we are armed with information and ready to face what is ahead.

Thank you all so much for all of your sweet thoughts and prayers. It may seem strange to some people that I am putting this out for everyone to see, but we want the advantage of having as many people as possible praying for our little guy and also to make everyone aware.

We obviously still aren't 100% sure that this is Cameron's problem, but if it is than it is crucial to diagnose it early on and seek treatment because once it is too late there is nothing you can do.

Thanks again everyone and I will be sure to keep you all posted with any updates. Please keep Cameron on your hearts and in your prayers.

You can read more about Craniosynostosis at http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/craniosynostosis/DS00959

I have a secret.

2010-04-15T15:13:00.001-05:00

Remember my desk that I slaved over for soooo long?

She has been replaced. Yep. I worked for HOURS and HOURS sanding, priming, painting, sealing, painting.....and she's gone. Well not totally. I am making the desk a home in my new craft room (more to come on that later).

After getting down to business in my new office and working at my desk for a while I realized it just was NOT enough desk space. I go through a lot of paperwork and I didn't have near enough room to spread out.

Since the renovations were finished at work my lovely boss' aka in-laws offered to buy me new furniture and of course I agreed.

Want to know what is awesome about my new furniture? It highly resembles this set from Ballard Designs:

Gorgeous, right?

Well, here is a photo of my actual furniture from the retailer website:

Pretty similar! Pssst...don't tell Ballard, but I actually like mine better. Look at the added storage! :)

I LOVE my new desk. It has a place for everything and you know how much I love to organize! I have mine set up like an L-shape desk and it works perfectly against the previously boring empty wall.

I would share a photo of my actual desk with you, but it is seriously not pretty to look at right now. Papers are everywhere and the shelves are bare. Someone come up with some fab ideas to fill the FOUR bookshelves in my office please!

Yes, you can.

2010-04-15T13:41:00.002-05:00

In my old office that I shared with my MIL and NIL (nana-in-law) I had made these memo boards for each of us:

I know it doesn't look like much, but I worked really hard on them. I made these about 4 years ago and they were one of my first projects. I made three total and I'm not sure how many of those darn tacks I had to mash in with my thumbs, but you better believe my hands were swollen when I finished! The fabric is actually really great, but you may not be able to tell from the photo. It is kind of like a faux leather that has a floral impression on it.

Well, since I have moved into my own office-WHOO HOOO!-I wanted to reuse my memo board, but obviously not with it looking like that! I know I haven't shown you my office yet, but I promise I will soon. It isn't coming together quickly at all because this is our busy season at work so I'm swamped and my almost 8 month old comes with me every day remember? So yeah, busy lady here.

My new office has black/brown furniture and I am accented it with white and blues. I began searching for the perfect fabric to recover my memo board with and couldn't find anything ANYWHERE. I really wanted a chevron pattern but with about 1-2" width and let me tell you I couldn't even find a chevron in aqua blue and white. Then I thought "Fine, I'll settle for stripes in aqua blue and white." Nope, couldn't find that one either!

SO, whats a girl to do when she can't find the fabric she wants? MAKE IT. That's right. I made my fabric. How? Simple really.

I purchased $5.00 white sheets from the dollar store.

I got out my can of spray paint

painters tape

tape measure

and staple gun and voila!

How I did it:

Iron Sheets.
Cut fabric to fit board (Left about 2" on every side to hang over)
Stapled the fabric to the memo board.
Used my measuring tape and laid out my painters tape on the material to form my stripes.
And then finally, SPRAY AWAY!

Total Project Cost- $5.00 for the sheets. All other materials I already had!

I know that right now a lot of you are probably thinking that I am crazy for spray painting material, but guess what? It worked and it looks great.

I'm telling you ppl-I literally will spray paint anything. So don't get too close...

I have about a million projects to share with you all and zilch time to do it. SO-right now I am stealing a few moments at work (shhh don't tell) to send you this quick fixer-upper!

What do you think? I'm loving it
!
(Check out these great parties!)

Frugal Friday

Our Easter Weekend

2010-04-06T08:29:00.001-05:00

We have hunted no eggs. We have had no Easter candy. Sad I know. Caden has been sick since last Thursday and Cameron is teething horribly (We plan on having our family Easter this weekend so Cade can hunt).

Since I have been stuck in the house since Friday with sick babies I got A LOT of things accomplished. I think most smart people would have rested and just laid around with their little ones, but you know me. If I was going to be stuck at home all weekend I was going to make use of my time.

So here is what I have been up to.

With the help of my amazing hubby, I took Caden's room from this:

(ewww)

To this:

(sorry for the terrible lighting-it was 6:00am!)

I am in love with the deep navy blue walls and the creamy white wainscoting. It looks so great. And hello did you notice the new bed!? Cody and I built it! Yes, we did. And it was easy thanks to KNOCK OFF WOOD! Love that site! If you have never heard of it you must have been living under a rock, but that's OK. You will definately want to follow her blog. That mamma is amazing!

Cody did the brunt of the building and I slaved my little self away sanding and staining it.

Oh, and please note the way my child is sleeping on his new bed-sideways AND with his toy car in a real comfy spot! hahaha

So here is the run down:

We did two coats of Ralph Lauren's color Sullivan in Behr paint on the walls and primer plus two coats of Behr's Creamy White on the wainscoting. THAT IS A LOT OF PAINTING! We were exhausted Sunday night my friends. Between all the painting, building the bed and taking care of our two little ones we were wondering what on earth we were thinking tackling all of that, but I am SO glad we did.

Obviously we are not close to being finished in Caden's room, but so far so good. I bought new bamboo blinds to go on the windows and am on the lookout for curtains. I still have to figure out the furniture and where everything will go. I bought two sconces at Home Depot to brighten the place up a bit and they are amazing-can't wait to get them up!

OK ok enough rambling on this end. That sums up our Easter weekend. Lots of work, but lots to show for it! I have been wanting to paint his room since we moved in!

What do you guys think? And more importantly-how was your weekend? What did you all do?

These are a few of my favorite things...

2010-04-01T14:00:00.002-05:00

Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens

Bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens....Come on you know you are at least humming it now!

Hopefully very soon I am going to have an AWESOME project to share with you all. Here is a hint:

Just wait until you see what we did with all of this wood! :)

OK on to the point of this post now. I have shared with you all a couple of times before about my love for ELF. Well, I hadn't gotten anything from them in a LONG time and the other day I got an email advertisement from them so I wandered on over like an obedient little target. I got my order in on Tuesday and I LOVE the products I got.

Here are my three favs:

All Over Cover Stick

This is apparently a concealer, but I dabbed it all over my face very lightly and then used the foundation brush to blend it in and I am in love!

Foundation Brush

The All Over Cover Stick is just the right amount of coverage for me. I have been using a Mary Kay foundation and you could barely even see it. In fact if I only did one side of my face you probably wouldn't even notice. Needless to say I wanted a bit more coverage! The brush works like magic to gently blend the foundation in and even better is the fact that I no longer have to get foundation ALL OVER MY FINGERS! :)

Mineral Blush

My other favorite is their Mineral Blush. It is the perfect color for me and glides on perfectly over my new foundation!

So you want to know the really really good part about these products?? EVERYTHING IS $1!!!! I'm not kidding. Nearly everything on their site is $1! The blush was $5 because it was from their mineral line, but come on that is cheap!

I love the products I have gotten from there and since they cost so little I don't feel so bad about loading my shopping cart with 20 items so I can try different colors and so on.

Have you ever used ELF? If you have never heard of them and end up trying it out let me know! :)

What are your favorite beauty products?

PS-any guesses on the project??

Free Printable's

2010-03-29T05:40:00.001-05:00

Here are the April Calendar's! :)

April Blue

APRIL bg

Have suggestions for next month? Leave them in a comment or feel free to email them directly to me: jessicajordan87@gmail.com

Super Easy Project!

2010-03-26T09:05:00.006-05:00

I feel like it has been far too long since I have posted anything worthwhile or even accomplished much. Life with two little boys is busy!

Remember this inspiration post? I showed you a fun way to display clipboards and even better-PRETTY clipboards!

I finally got around to doing one of my very own last night. I took one of these:

And turned it into this:

How I did it:

1. Once I settled on paper I liked and I thought would work well coordinating with my office I turned the paper face down and traced my clipboard onto it with ball point pen so that it would get as close as possible.

2. Since I used scrapbook paper it was too short to cover the entire clip board so I had to do some work. I took my scrap that was left over and had to finagle it to fit around the 'clippy' part of the clipboard. With a few snips I was good to go. The next time I do this I am going to try wrapping paper instead so I have more to work with.

3. Finally, I got out my modpodge and my trusty sponge brushes that I swear by and got to work. I began with the small top piece that fit around the clip so that the larger piece would overlap onto it and cover nicely.

4. I let it dry overnight and in the morning I had this beauty to take to work with me! Super easy project!

Cost Run Down/Supply List:

Clip Board - Free from work.

ModPodge - Already had from previous projects.

Scrapbook Paper - I think around $0.50 (1/2 off at Hobby Lobby right now!)
Foam Brushes - Already had (very cheap at HobLob or wally world, about a little over $1 for a bag of 2 or 3)

Obviously having a pretty clipboard is not a necessity, but it sure does make counting in 20 boxes of inventory shipments more fun and brighten my day a bit!

Have you ever made one? Let's see it!
Check out other great Frugal Friday projects here.

Frugalicious Friday!

Fabulous Freebie: Tweeeet!

2010-03-23T09:24:00.000-05:00

I was trying to find a cute button/badge for twitter and was not impressed so I decided to create a rough one really quickly. I did this in about 10 minutes this AM so don't judge if it's lacking! lol

Simply save the image to your computer or favorite hosting site like photobucket and then upload it to your blog in the layout page of blogger using the photo gadget (you do not need to select shrink to fit b/c I have sized it for you already). You can add your twitter profile link (ex: http://www.twitter.com/jessicajordan) when you are uploading it to blogger that way when someone clicks on your button it will take them directly to your twitter account!

Select download on the file below to download and save or right click the image above and select save.

Twitter Icon

If I am leaving anything out on the instructions feel free to leave a comment to let me know or email me here: jessicajordan87@gmail.com

Fabulous Freebie: Notepad

2010-03-17T13:24:00.000-05:00

Here is a fun freebie for you guys. Print it out on regular or cardstock paper, cut and enjoy!

Accomplish

I keep mine on my desk next to my keyboard to jot down things I need to get done throughout the day. You could obviously keep yours anywhere you'd like: the fridge, your desk, in your bag/purse, etc.

Have an idea for a fabulous freebie you would love to have? Leave it in a comment or email me here: jessicjaordan87@gmail.com

$7.99 ain't bad.

2010-03-14T20:43:00.002-05:00

Nope it ain't bad at all.

Sorry for the bad grammar y'all, but I am from Texas ya know!

So. On Friday I was driving home from work and I found myself with nothing planned. No children. No husband.

Just me.

Free time.

And on payday none the less.

Uh-oh. You know what that means don't you? GOODWILL TRIP! bwahahahaha

I almost got away with it to. Until my hubby decided to call me while I was checking out and I had to admit that I was checking out a basketful at goodwill!

It was totally worth it. I found SO MANY goodies! I can't wait to share all of the projects with you, but for now I only have one complete.

I do have a few questions for you ladies though before I get to the good stuff. I am on the hunt for a gorgeous and fun fabric to recover a memo board in my office. I am hoping for a turquoise and white color combo and ideally a chevron pattern, but I am open to others. Know of anything?

Second, do you have a secret recipe for removing stubborn stickers? I have already spent an hour trying to remove a giant sticker from a goodwill find and it is killin me!

Ok, ok here we go! This is one of my fabulous goodwill finds from Friday and it is also my favorite yet:

Isn't she great? A little rough around the edges, but with a little TLC like so and only a few coats of spray paint I turned her into this:

(someone pls donate the mula I need to replace our carpet with hard woods...)

My hubby repaired the damaged bottom with this:

Not exactly the best solution, but it's what I had, OK? Then, I used KILZ spray primer on the entire thing. It is the bomb diggity! I wouldn't ever use any other. After all of that had dried I did several coats of Valspars White spray paint in gloss and I sprayed the hardware with Rustoleum's metallic oil rubbed bronze. I wish you could see the handles sparkle, but I am not the best photographer and this photo does my new love no justice whatsoever.

Now I just need to find the perfect paper to line the inside of the drawers for a little extra sunshine when I open her up! :)

What do you think? I'm not sure if I'm liking it in our bedroom just yet, but that might just be because it's so new. If it doesn't work out there I think it would look great in my new office too!

I'm linking up over at:

Check out the rest of the projects linked up here.

Check out the rest of the awesomeness over there! (did you know that awesomeness is actually a work according to spell check?) ahhahahaha

Fabulous Weekend Freebie!

2010-03-13T10:34:00.001-06:00

Here is a fun little freebie for you ladies that I whipped up during nap time this AM.

Enjoy!

PS- I found some AH-mazing things at goodwill last night and have been slaving away on them. I can't wait to share! :)

From old to new

2010-03-11T10:44:00.004-06:00

Project Parade!! :D

Check out all of the other great things going on this friday!

Also linking up to the Shabby Nest's Frugal Friday party! :D

I decided that since I am nowhere near ready to share my office with you all because it is still in the beginning hideous stages due to my crazy work load that I would at least share with you my desk transformation.

I started out with this bad boy (for free courtesy of my wonderful Grandma).

(BTW I am quite horrified to show you this photo because you get a slight glimpse of the GIANT mess that was my garage at the time this photo was taken-everyone's garage is messy right?)

This desk was a LONG process indeed.

First, I sanded. I think I went through at least 10 pieces of sandpaper for my little hand-sander if not more.

Then I cleaned it all of with a damp cloth.

Then, I brushed on some of this:

That was quite a task also. I made sure to give it an extra good coat and I spent a lot of time cramped in some pretty tight spaces in my garage trying to get every nook and cranny!

Then I painted a coat of Valspars Fired Earth ~~immediately after the primer dried~~ about a week later when I got some extra time :D

The weekend after I painted the desk my wonderful hubs helped me and painted it with polyurethane. I was so happy to see the sun so that we could paint that vile smelly stuff outside. It had been dark and gloomy for weeks! A little later I also had to drill a hole into the center top of the desk for my computer wires and cables to go through.

I thought she was done....and I was wrong.

I loaded this baby into my suburban-by myself. Yes, that's right. I am a crazy woman. This is an old desk and let me tell you it is SOLID and HEAVY! But, as solid and heavy as this desk is-I am 10 times more stubborn. I was ready to get it up to work and in my new office pronto and I wasn't willing to wait for my hubs to do it for me either. I almost gave up trying to get it into the car because the desk not only has the four outside legs that I had to hurdle over the edge of the car, it has two in the middle underneath and I just about snapped those puppies off trying to wedge this thing in the back! :D

Anyway enough about that. I got the desk to work and maybe it was just the fluorescent lighting, but my desk literally looked like greenish brown poo. Sorry for the nasty analogy, but I don't think anything else would do it justice.

I was devastated. ALL my hard work for nothing! So I set out to the paint store for some new paint and I am so glad I went to the experts! Don't get me wrong I love Home Depot and Lowe's for their variety, but for something like this I needed some direction.

I wen to one of my local specialty paint stores and the man behind the counter is a miracle worker. He told me I was crazy for all the work I did and that I didn't need to use polyurethane at all and that oil based paint would be perfectly fine (I was worried about the paint sticking because the top of the desk is Formica). I took him one of the shelves from my new office bookcases (more to come on those later) and he created an oil based paint to match the stain of the shelf perfectly!

He also told me to use these when painting furniture instead of a brush:

I thought he was nuts, but I did as he said and let me tell you people I won't ever brush again! I sanded the desk again, but just lightly this time and when time came to paint the foam brush worked perfectly with the oil based paint and when I was done I had no problem just tossing it out since it was less than $1. That means no cleaning paint from brushes! Whoo hoo!

So, I know you are most likely bored out of your mind right now if you are even still reading so here are the after shots for you:

She's not perfect, but she's still a beauty!

Now if only I could get the drawers to come out without cursing and jerking the desk so wildly my lamp nearly falls over I'd be great. : )

OH and PS- I spray painted the hardware with Rustoleum's Metallic Oil Rubbed Bronze-my fave!

I may have left something out and if I did I apologize-life is bananas right now and my brain is on overload if you couldn't already tell from my ramblings!

So what do you think of the change?

Repurposed drapes.

2010-03-07T16:52:00.004-06:00

Feature Yourself Friday!

I'm linking up!

and here!

and here (go check out all of the other great projects linked up at the shabby nest!)

You may or may not remember my headboard project here. I am a bad blogger and never gave you any info on how or anything, but I did give you two links in this post so that you could read the tutorials I followed myself.

While I did love my headboard it never looked 'right' with our paint color (boy was that a headache) and I just wasn't IN LOVE with it-until now!

Before I share my photos I want you all to try and appreciate how far our bedroom has come.

It started out like this when we first moved in:

UGHHHHH It makes me cringe. So ugly.

Then it went to this:

Still awful! Our headboard made a big difference on our bed, but look at how those colors clash! My wish for a calming deep gray blue room was killed with the blue crayon-like paint.

We have since painted again and today I recovered the headboard. Also, you know I have been needing a new duvet cover and I finally got one.

So, you may consider this the official bed and headboard reveal. This photos are as real as it gets too people. It may be hard to tell, but I did absolutely no cleaning up before I took these photos for you ; )

It all started when I found this curtain at IKEA in the 'as is' section for a mere $7.00

You know I can't pass up a good bargain. I had no idea what I would do with this until I got home and then it hit me and I did this:

Ahhhh....you have to love stripes!

If that still isn't doing it for you though I think my models really made it work:

Sweet brothers:

Yes, that is a toddler with pizza sauce all over his face on my new white duvet. Just another day people.

PS-sorry I didn't make the bed for these pictures, but doesn't it just look WAY more comfy and cozy this way? You know you are dying to climb into that mass of pillows right now! :D

sweet growth

2010-03-04T07:52:00.000-06:00

Well I don't have any beautiful photos to show you of my new office or any fun decorating ideas at the moment, but I do have some good news.

Unfortunately, I also have some bad news.

Remember when I shared with you all about Cameron here and here? I have some more news to share now.

My sweet angel is 6 months old!

I can hardly stand how fast he is growing. He is thriving and such a joy to our family!

OK so I'll get to it. The good news is that Cameron's head has finally shown growth. His kissable little noggin has grown an entire inch since his 4 month check up. When the nurse told me the measurement at his appointment I felt like a weighted had been lifted off of me and I could finally breathe.

Then came the questions.

At most 'well child' check up's they take your child's weight, height, temp etc. They also go through a long list of questions about your child's developmental milestones and it's almost always 'yes, yes, yes, yes'.

I was still glowing when this portion of the appointment rolled around and I began answering all of the questions and then suddenly I had to answer no to one question.

And again.

And again.

My pulse started racing and my chest was pounding and aching as if there was an elephant on top of me. I believe I ended up having to answer no to around 5 of the questions regarding his development.

I was crushed.

My mind immediately began reeling and wondering and panicking.

I sat and waited for the doctor to come into the room and tried to be patient while holding on to Cam for dear life and watching Caden roll around on the filthy doctor's office floor....Yes he was and yes I was that out of it that I let it happen. Don't worry-I whipped out the hand sanitizer and cleaned him up soon after.

When my sweet doctor entered the room he had that knowing look on his face. He knows me well. He actually delivered both my brother and I so he isn't just a doctor to us. He is sort of like family.

He began telling me that everything could be fine-which is what he always says-but that we need to go see another neurologist to have Cameron checked out once again.

You see the reason that I instantly began panicking when I was realizing that Cameron was behind on his development is because all of this time that we have been going through this with Cam our doctor has told us: "Try not to worry. His head isn't growing just yet, but his development is good and that is what is most important."

We have an appointment late April to see another neurologist and get a second opinion and make sure our little man is OK.

So...all of the relief I felt when the nurse told me that his head had grown and inch just instantly vanished and was replaced with fear. That was one exhausting appointment my friends.

I AM SO TIRED OF THIS FEAR.

I have made a decision and I am hoping and praying that I can stand by it.

I will not let this fear eat me up inside any longer.

I will not let the worry and stress make my physically ill.

I will not allow the fear to cause me to tear up when I look at my sweet precious boy.

I will think only positive thoughts.

I will pray over Cameron every day and declare that he is healthy.

I will be strong for my family.

Duvet haters this is for you! :D

2010-03-01T14:56:00.000-06:00

OK, so I have received a few comments regarding the duvet questions from my last post and most of you are against them because of the way they can bunch and move around inside the cover. I totally get that! After getting several of the same responses about the shifting I decided I had to share this with you all.

I think this post may help you all out!

Meet your new best friend ladies:

These things work like a charm! Find them here. You will love your duvet after you invest in these and for only $5.99 it is so worth it!

Lot's going on around here!

2010-02-28T17:42:00.000-06:00

So I haven't posted since Feb 16th! Wow. I'm a slacker. I have a lot going on and I plan on letting you all in on it very soon.

First off. I do finally have my very own office and it is coming together! I moved in Friday and it is SO exciting! I have a lot of posts I need to do regarding my office, but we will get to that soon.

On another note however, if you have small children you may have experienced the following story a time or two. I will spare you the details and just tell you that my two year old peed ALL OVER my practically brand new beautiful duvet cover.

UGH.

You may be thinking "so what? just wash it." Well....

My sweet hubby trying to help, removed the duvet cover to wash it and unkowingly also washed my sundress in with the duvet cover.

An emerald green sundress that had yet to have ever been washed.

Yes. You guessed it. I now have a white and emerald green spotted duvet cover. Not really my style my friends.

So....I am now on the hunt for something new. I want to stay with white because I LOVE love my bedding all white and comfy cozy like that.

My current duvet/comforter is from IKEA and is King size. I'm hoping that it is standard size and will fit an duvet cover....

Here is something I like:

(via)
I love the 'kissing pleat'. So pretty, but it is a comforter and not a duvet cover.
My question for you guys is do you duvet? Have you ever used one, do you have one now? Also, where to buy? Know of any good sites that have great prices or something you think I would like?

All of your input is greatly appreciated so comment away please!!! :D

Fabulous Freebie: Hoot hoot!

2010-02-16T11:26:00.001-06:00

I was recently looking for an alternative to a boring old calendar for home and work and decided to just make my own printable version for fun. I thought you all may want one too so just click below and ta da!

Since we are already mid-February I started with March.

March Hoot

Right now I have mine attached right near my desk at work on my file cabinet with a magnet so I can see it without having to turn around. You could also attach them to your refrigerator or even inside your cabinet door in the kitchen for quick and easy access.

If you guys like it I will continue to post a new one each month. Give me some creative ideas for themes and colors! :D

Tweet tweet i think you're sweet...

2010-02-09T11:19:00.001-06:00

So I came across this link thanks to this site. And I am SO glad I did. Caden (my two y/o) is having a Vday party at school on Friday and I have been looking for some adorable cards for him to hand out and I just haven't found any worthwhile, but now my search is over!

All you have to do is go to the page I linked up and Ellen over @thelongthread.com made a huge list of printable vday cards! They are all so great and SO many that there are bound to be some for any taste.

So amazing!

Simply print, cut, sign and ta-da!

Even a chair...

2010-02-08T09:58:00.028-06:00

can be beautiful and add something extra and beautiful to a room in your home and the same thing can be said for your desk chair.

Right now I'm sporting one of these bad boys:

And while it does serve it's purpose-it's a little plain for my taste.

So, I am on the hunt for a beautiful-AND AFFORDABLE-office chair. I may end up salvaging an old chair from goodwill for the job, but until I find the right one I will be souring stores and the web for the perfect addition to my office that I am waiting on! You can read about that here if you missed it.

So here we go. I began my search for a beautiful and affordable office chair at IKEA and I soon discovered I didn't need to look any further. They, as usual, don't disappoint when it comes to originality and options!

ALLAK Swivel Chair $59.99

First up is a simple, but still pretty white leather chair. I know it isn't much different than my current chair, but I think that the pop of this white leather really makes a difference compared to the drab black chair.

SNILLE Swivel Chair $22.99

This chair is available in many different colors, but I chose this gorgeous icey blue color. How amazing would it look in an office with a white/blue color scheme? I know it doesn't look quite as comfy, but you can fix that so easy by simply tossing a pretty printed throw pillow for a little added comfort.

Maybe something like this:

ALVINE FLORA Cushion $24.99

This beauty would really make the chair pop!

GREGOR Swivel Chair $89.99

This guy is the most expensive so far and how coincidental that it also happens to be my favorite! The chair cushion is even removable and machine washable!

SKRUVSTA Swivel Chair $149.99

This one is more than I would like to spend, but I have always loved this office chair from IKEA. The fabric is so colorful and fun! It looks pretty comfy cozy too!

I guess that is all for now. I think my favorite is still the GREGOR chair. What about you? Have a favorite?

I will leave you with a few more inspirational photos. Notice how the chairs add a little extra pop to these spaces:

(via)

Lights, Camera, Action!

2010-02-02T10:40:00.000-06:00

Remember my post dedicated to burlap here? If you missed it you should go check it out because there is some great stuff on there!

At the end of that post I had told you all my plan to find and salvage an old directors chair for my hubs. Well, my search has yet to yield the goods, but guess what I just came across on World Market while looking for something for another post?

Yep.

You guessed it

(via)

They have these beauties for sale for a mere $19.99! They sale the chairs and the canvas covers separately, but that is perfect for me since I was planning on making a burlap seat and back for the chair anyway.

It is slightly more than I was hoping to find one for, but with it being brand new and in good condition you can't beat that!

So, I am placing my order today and as soon as it arrives I'll get to work on the burlap seat and backing. Hopefully it won't be too tricky for me ; )

Have you found and great deals or re-purposed anything lately?

beautiful inspiration

2010-01-29T05:17:00.000-06:00

If you read my last post you know that I am finally getting my own office and you could probably tell that I am just a tad bit excited about it.

So I have been collecting images of inspiration to gaze at as I try to figure out how I am going to decorate the office as well as ideas on how to stay better organized. SO I thought I would share them with you and get some input on your likes and dislikes and any tips you may have.

So far I know that the walls are going to most likely be an off-white and we are going to re-carpet, but I'm not sure what that will look like. I am also going to be bringing a small couch from home to put in the office that I can hopefully find a slipcover for. It is in perfect condition but the fabric is quite drab and I would love for it to have a crisp white cover to dress it up, but still remain comfy casual. Also, I am getting a used desk to most likely refinish and either sand or paint. I haven't quite decided which yet. I will hopefully know this weekend when I pick the desk up.

So here are some of images and I will most likely be adding to this post for a while. I hope you enjoy! :D

contemporary home office design

I love the contrast of the black walls and white desk/shelving in this photo. Also, the black/white chair paired with the bright yellow pillow is gorgeous!

home design
I love everything about this photo. The colors are great. You can't go wrong with white and I LOVE how organized everything is. I also love the use of all of the W's paired together at the top of the bookcase and how they stacked them in front of one other. The splashes of green throughout all of the white really brighten up the space and fresh flowers can breathe life into any room.

contemporary home office design

I'm sure that like me you have seen photos of bookcases with beautiful books all arranged by color to create a cohesive feel and it is quite stunning. I never would have thought to bring that into an office space, but I am so excited to try it not only because it looks so great, but it also will help to keep everything organized. I have countless notebooks for vendors, orders, and other files. Now I just need to choose the colors and make it happen!

eclectic home office design

Using wrapping paper or scrapbook paper is a great way to dress almost anything up and to customize things to make them your own. To top it off hanging these beauties on the wall is a great idea. It's sort of like having a peg board, but much more original and pleasing to the eye!

contemporary home office design

This home office looks so fun to me. Once again I am loving the use of the dark wall color and white desks. The photo collages on the wall help to break up all of the dark space and brighten it up a bit.

traditional home office design by seattle architect Bosworth Hoedemaker

The tall window in this office is ideal. What a great way to keep you in tune with the outdoors while you work so you don't feel so trapped in front of your computer!

I absolutely adore the contrast of the white walls and the extremely dark wood flooring. GORGEOUS.

I am digging the subtle use of soft blues and pinks in this almost all white room. All of the natural light in this office is amazing. Too bad my new office is windowless...

This office space is a little on the cluttered side for my taste, but I love all of the neutral colors and the whitewashed wood floors are the best!

Here are some more gorgeous covered clip boards! I have to make these now...

These pottery barn desks are divine. Maybe I'll be painting my 'new' old desk this creamy white...

So what do you think? Have a favorite?

Do you have any favorite organizational tips or tricks you would like to share?

Do you have any great websites that you draw inspiration from?

I absolutely love hearing from readers so let me know.

I hope everyone has a fantastic weekend. We are headed tomorrow morning to visit my family at the ranch house all weekend so hasta luego compadres!